Choices
by bellesexual
Summary: When the fight between Rivkin and Tony in Semper Fidelis results in Tony's death, all hell breaks loose. Gibbs is a suspect in a murder, McGee is forced to lead the team and Ziva is a mess. How will a visit from beyond the grave change things? Complete.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello, everyone! Yes, I'm being an idiot and starting another story with 5 in progress and another still in its early stages. But I saw a tiny snippet of Aliyah today and had this idea. It is a tragic story, so it's a bit different to what I usually do, but it's still a romance-style story, although the romance is a bit one-sided. Regardless, if it was a movie, it would be a chick flick. I'm also going to say that it is a little melodramatic. Anyway, please let me know what you think. **

Summary: What if that in Ziva's apartment didn't go as planned for DiNozzo? Will the man who truly holds her trust, faith, and most importantly, the key to her heart be revealed? WARNING: MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH. Rated T to be safe.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except this laptop and the brain where I think up all my ideas

Ziva David knew something bad was going to happen. She was forced to prepare herself for the worst when she saw her light on as she approached her apartment building, and saw silhouettes moving stealthily across the room. She swore she saw one of them draw a gun, but she did not see as she was already racing to her apartment and drawing her own as she burst through the door.

But no matter how she had prepared, nothing would have been enough for her to expect this.

"Michael," she said breathlessly, staring at her boyfriend, bringing her gun down at the sight of him.

Michael was sitting in the middle of her living room, the centre of the mess that now surrounded him. There were ornaments and magazines strewn all over the carpet and shards of glass everywhere. He had blood on his shirt and a gun in his hand. Not his own gun.

Then Ziva's eyes fell upon the other body in the room. The weaker side of the fight, the one who didn't come out stronger. He lay there, lifeless, his arm bent at a weird angle—probably broken—and three distinct bullet holes in his chest. It was Ziva's partner, Tony DiNozzo.

She gasped when he saw him, saw the blood that gushed from the wounds in his chest and back onto the cream coloured carpet. She rushed over and checked his pulse desperately, finding nothing but depressing emptiness. His skin was still warm.

"Call 911," she ordered Michael.

"Ziva, he's dead. I think we need to talk about—"

"Just do it!" she barked.

Michael did what he was told, and when he was done, he crouched next to Ziva, his shadow covering the body of the man he had just killed.

"How...how did this happen?" Ziva whispered, with her hand over Tony's no longer beating heart.

"He came here, to question you about your current case. When I answered the door, he told me why he was here and decided he would arrest me instead, and when I _calmly _explained to him that I was not guilty of anything and that his actions were indeed irrational, he attacked me. I was left with no choice."

Ziva had to take a few deep breaths before she could say any more. It was a lot of difficult information to process. Michael was lying through his teeth but Ziva seemed to believe it. The truth was, he had initiated the entire fight, and after successfully breaking his arm, he had watched Tony collapse on the floor, crawled over to the gun he had dropped, and shot him three times in the chest, each one a kill shot.

"You do not agree with my actions?" Michael asked coldly.

"No," she replied, suddenly angrier. "I think you're lying, Michael. Tony may not have trusted you, but he would not attack you. He is a civil person."

"Was. He's dead, Ziva." Each word felt like a blow to the face to Ziva. "He came here because he didn't trust _you. _He was going to question you. That is not a trusting action."

"He was doing his job. He is...was an excellent investigator and no matter what happens, I will never doubt that."

"He let his social and professional lives mix. He was jealous and it clouded his judgement to the point where it cost him his life. Does that sound like a great investigator to you?"

Ziva said nothing.

"Your relationship with this man was never going to get you anywhere, Ziva, and I think you know that. He was not deserving of your trust and friendship."

"He was my partner," she said softly. "When you work with someone for four years and you put your life in their hands every day, you learn to trust them. And Tony has changed me completely as a person, for the better. He made me happier, much more understanding of American customs. He made me laugh; he was always there for me, even though I never chose to seek help from him. I am the one who could see past the wall he puts up to the rest of the world, and I have discovered that behind that wall was a gentle and wonderful man and _you _killed him. We may not have been like we used to be but that doesn't mean I have forgotten those times."

"Ziva—"

"No! You killed him, Michael!" she shouted, hot tears welling in her eyes. She promptly wiped them away in an attempt to keep her dignity. "I think you should leave."

"Ziva, you're making a mistake," he told her firmly.

"No, my mistake was thinking that my father had no influence on you, that you, unlike him, could be trusted. Now I am not so sure I made the correct decision."

Knowing he could not talk her out of this, he silently left Ziva sobbing into Tony's shirt. She was so guilty for not being there to stop it, for leaving their relationship where it was. She would have to live with that forever.

When the paramedics arrived, Ziva rode in the back of the ambulance on the way to Bethesda, even though there was no hope of him surviving. Another staff member sat in the back with her; a woman.

"He was very handsome," the woman whispered.

Ziva sniffed. She knew the woman had the wrong idea about them, but she smiled a little all the same.

When they entered the hospital, Ziva sat in the empty waiting room, holding her cell phone in her hand, simply staring at the screen. Who should she call first? What would she say?

It was if the heavens knew of her problems, because Gibbs called her that very second. She answered it calmly, trying to sound as if she had not been crying.

"Ziva."

"Ziva, I know it's late, but have you seen DiNozzo? He left two hours ago and said he'd be back and he's not answering any of his phones."

"Did you talk to McGee?" she replied, avoiding the subject.

"I figured it would be best to talk to you first. You do know something, don't you?"

She sobbed. "I'm sorry, Gibbs, it's my fault, I'm sorry."

Ziva didn't want to talk any more. She simply hung up the phone. She knew Gibbs and McGee would find her, and sure enough, they were at Bethesda in twenty minutes, Abby in tow.

"Where is he, Ziva? Is he OK?" she asked frantically.

The wise expression plastered on Gibbs' face said he knew that he wasn't.

Ziva looked up at her friends. Her eyes were red and shiny and she held a tissue in her hand. She hated to watch the Goth's face form the most devastating expression she had ever seen.

"Oh, Ziva," she said, embracing her friend tightly.

McGee tried to be brave, wiped his face with his palm. Gibbs rested a hand on his shoulder.

A nurse stepped out of a room and approached the group. "Is Miss David here?" she asked kindly.

Ziva rose from her chair and went to speak to the nurse in private.

"I'm sorry, we weren't able to save Mr DiNozzo."

Ziva inhaled a shaky breath. "I know. I knew he didn't have a chance."

"I really am sorry." And with that, the woman walked away.

Ziva bravely returned to her group. "He's gone," she said, not looking any of them in the eye. There was silence for a few minutes. Not surprisingly, Abby was the first to speak.

"Ziva, you know he cared a lot about you. He was always on your side. He would have done anything for you. He would have laid down his own life any day."

"Thank you Abby. I'm sure he felt the same way about you."

The team waited in silence for Ducky and Vance to arrive, and were told that Tony's body and personal items would be sent to NCIS the next morning, so none of them left.

At four in the morning, McGee and Ziva were both awake, and he couldn't wait any more to ask what had happened.

"I only know what Michael told me," Ziva said. "And I am not sure I believe it."

"Rivkin did this?" McGee's face screwed up and his fists clenched, but he calmed himself. "You know, what Abby said was true. He really did care about you, more than any of us, even himself."

"And I took him for granted."

"Rule Number 8," said Gibbs, who they thought had been asleep.

Their heads all turned sharply when they heard footsteps made by none other than Michael Rivkin.

"What are you doing here?" McGee sneered.

Michael ignored him. "Ziva, I could not leave things in such a bad place. May I speak to you alone?"

Ziva went immediately, not wanting to let her teammates know how scared she was. She felt as if she did not know Michael anymore.

"Come back to Israel with me, Ziva," he said.

That had not been what she was expecting. "What?"

"It is your homeland, Ziva. It is where you belong. Your family are there."

"I am sorry, Michael. This team has already lost one member. They do not need to lose two."

"You are putting _their _needs before yours, mine and your father's?"

"Eli doesn't _need _me, and he knows that I know that."

"These people do not _need _you either."

"But I need them. Doing work like I do with them forms a bond thicker than blood and stronger than anything. They are my family."

"Ziva, this is your last chance. Who are you going to choose? Your family, your home country, Mossad, who made you what you are, or these Americans who have made you weak."

Ziva's rage overwhelmed her at that moment and she gave Michael a swift, hard slap across the face. "Leave. Now. I do not need Mossad, or you. My father does not need me and I have learnt not to need him. Israel will always be my homeland but America is my home now."

"Very well, Ziva," Michael said grimly, and turned and left in an almost robotic fashion.

Finally feeling somewhat at peace for the first time in months, she seated herself with her team members and leant against Abby for support as she attempted to get some sleep.

The next morning the still weary and depressed woke to the sound of the early morning news that was playing on the waiting room's television.

'_And in other news, the body of Mossad Officer Michael Rivkin was found in Anacostia Park this morning at the bottom of a creek. Police have found a bullet hold to the man's chest but have not ruled out drowning as a cause of death.'_

They froze. Abby gripped McGee's and Ziva's hand as they all realised one member of their team was missing.

**A/N: How's that for a cliff hanger? I think I did an alright job on this story. If you guys like it, future chapters can include guest appearances, and possibly from the deceased, Kill Ari style. Please, pretty please review! I would love to wake up with a full inbox tomorrow morning! It would be a nice way to start my second depressing day back at school!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi, how is everyone? New chapter today! Hurrah and please review! I am really enjoying writing this story.**

_**Last time...  
Tony and Rivkin fought in Ziva's apartment and it didn't turn out so well for Tony, but Abby, Gibbs, McGee and Ziva spent the night at the hospital anyway. Ziva was extremely angry at Michael but later he came to the hospital and asked Ziva to come back to Israel with him but she said no and the next morning his body was found in Anacostia Park and Gibbs was missing. *Freeze black and white* **___

"Where is Gibbs?" Abby asked innocently.

"If I knew, would I be staring at his empty chair, Abby?" McGee replied, sounding scared himself. "Am I the only one who thinks that Gibbs—"

"No," Abby and Ziva both said in unison.

The agent and the forensic scientist both gazed compassionately at the Israeli. She was looking a little shaken, and fair enough. She had just lost her partner and now her boss had potentially killed her ex-boyfriend and she had just spent the night in a hospital waiting room.

"Are you OK, Ziva?"

"I could have stopped it," she said. "I _should _have stopped it, the fight. I stopped on my way home to buy a chocolate bar. If I hadn't then Tony and Michael would still be alive."

"It's not your fault," Abby droned, sounding like a broken record. It was a knee-jerk reaction to say that when anything bad happened, even if it was true.

"I know, but I still could have stopped it."

"Look, guys, maybe Gibbs is just in the bathroom," McGee suggested.

"Your friend left about three a.m., didn't say where he was going," said the nurse at the front desk.

"OK, we know he left. That still doesn't mean he killed Rivkin."

"It doesn't mean he didn't do it either," Ziva said, her brown eyes shining.

"It doesn't come under our jurisdiction, does it?" McGee asked. "Michael was a Mossad officer. Local LEOs are probably going to handle it."

"Besides, we have to stay here, for Tony," Abby said.

"I think we should see the crime scene," Ziva said. "We are not far from Anacostia and they might have only just started processing the crime scene. And crimes that take place in nature always take longer."

"Someone has to stay for Tony's things and wait for Ducky," McGee said.

"I will," Ziva was more than willing to stay behind. "I do not know if I can handle another death in twenty four hours."

Abby and McGee nodded, and left, walking heavily and slowly. Only when they were well and truly gone did she let one tear fall. But once one fell, she couldn't stop the rest coming and made a break for the bathrooms, which luckily were empty.

Ziva stared at her reflection in the mirror, and felt as if the person staring back was a stranger. She dared to feel a little sorry for herself. She had been through hell in these past few hours, and she felt especially guilty about the way she had left things with both Tony and Michael, even though she never could have forgiven Michael for what he did.

Ziva felt someone watching her, and in the reflection of the mirror she saw him—_Tony. _She turned around, but there was no one there. Deep down, she had known it was just a figment of her imagination.

"It's OK, Ziva," she heard him say as his image reappeared in the mirror. His voice sounded so _real. _Just like she remembered it, fresh in her head. She wiped the tears from her cheeks. "You still look beautiful."

That comment made her smile just the slightest bit. He looked like himself, just a little paler, with three bullet holes in his chest.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered to him.

"Don't be. I may not have died the way I had always pictured it but there's nothing I can do about it now. Besides, it's not your fault. And if I'm honest, I'm glad you didn't stop it, because you might've ended up dead too."

She was silent and still. Her imagination had recreated Tony so realistically.

"Do you remember the first time we met?" he asked. "It wasn't under the greatest circumstances. I'd just lost my partner and yes, I'd been having a sexual fantasy about her and then you walked in. You were unlike any woman I'd ever met before. You weren't afraid of anything, you just accepted life for what it was, and you were absolutely _gorgeous. _My death just came unexpectedly and you're recreating my image because you're so used to it. It's OK, it'll pass, eventually. Once you get over it."

"I don't know if I ever will, Tony."

"Now listen to me, Ziva, because I'm not gonna repeat myself: you are wonderful and you're going to marry a wonderful guy someday and have a little family of your own and you're not gonna let me stop you."

"How come you never said anything like that to me when you were alive?"

"Because I never expected this to happen. I was playing a long game. I figured if I was patient and lucky enough, I'd have you as mine in a few years. But I was too busy hiding behind the face of a clown that I never told you my feelings."

"And now it is too late."

Tony was about to say something when another lady walked into the bathroom and suddnly he disappeared. She left and returned depressingly to the waiting room.

Abby and McGee's car trip was silent except for Abby's snuffles. McGee knew that if Gibbs did this, he would have to be in charge of his little team for a while, and call on everything he had learnt from both his boss and Tony.

"It's O—" McGee began.

"No, it's not OK, Timmy. Tony's dead and Gibbs is a suspect of murder and Ziva's boyfriend is dead too. Well, ex-boyfriend but still, how does she keep so together?"

"OK, first of all, Rivkin could have been shot post mortem and drowned like the police said. Second, we don't know if it was Gibbs and third, that's just Ziva's personality. She's a little more reserved than, uh, you. As for Tony, we'll have a lovely funeral for him and all give speeches."

"Thanks, Timmy."

McGee took one hand off the wheel and placed it around Abby's shoulder. "We still have each other, Abby. And I know no matter what, that will always be enough for me."

Abby waited on the sidelines of the crime scene as McGee flashed his badge to the local investigators and took a look at the body.

"We're gonna wait on Autopsy results before we decide on a cause of death," said one of the cops. "However, we do know that the victim's death came around 0400 this morning."

McGee gritted his teeth. This didn't rule out Gibbs as a suspect.

"Is there something you know about this man that makes you so interested, Special Agent McGee?"

"Several things," he replied. "Yesterday he killed an agent on my team, he's been in a relationship with another agent on my team for quite a while now, and our team leader left the hospital at three this morning and is now a suspect. I want our ME to handle the autopsy."

The officer was stunned. "Wow, that's heavy stuff, man. I'm sorry for your loss. You can take him. Call your ME and have him here ASAP. Get someone to track down your boss. Good luck, kid."

This was McGee's time. It was up to him to find what little amount of justice was left for his team.

He had Abby keep tabs on Gibbs. His cell was off, and his last call had been placed from the hospital, so that didn't help. No credit card hits since yesterday and she had a BOLO out on him and his car. There was nothing more she could do than that. She spent most of her time crying and waiting for Ziva to come back to NCIS with Tony's personal affects and anything from her apartment that could help to figure out exactly what happened last night.

Meanwhile, Ducky and Palmer arrived at the crime scene promptly. Both men had heard the news and were just as devastated as the rest of the team.

"I hate to say it, but I'm glad this guy's dead," said Palmer, staring angrily at Rivkin's body.

"Calm yourself please, Mr Palmer, we have an investigation to perform."

Ducky checked the time of death, which had been correct at 0400 hours that morning, and was unsure whether the gunshots were post mortem of not, because there were no bloodstains as he had been in a creek when he was found.

"Do you really think Agent Gibbs would do this, doctor?" Palmer asked.

"I've known Gibbs for a long time, Jimmy. I think there is a strong possibility he did this."

"Ducky!" McGee said, shocked at his scepticism.

"Well, all the evidence points towards him, Timothy. Evidence doesn't lie."

"Just don't forget who you're accusing," Tim said as his cell rang.

"_McGee, it's Ziva," _the Israeli said into the phone. _"I've just dropped all of Tony's personal affects and things from my apartment to Abby. I'll be there soon, I'm just in the elevator now."_

"Don't worry about it, Ziva," McGee told her. "We're done here. Because of the water, we can't tell if the gunshots were post mortem or not, so we're heading back to NCIS. We found three shell casings so that makes me think it might not have been Gibbs."

"_Why?"_

"Would Gibbs leave evidence that could prove he committed murder? He's too good for that."

"_But who else would want to kill Michael that lives in the States?" Ziva's voice was getting shaky. Their situation was really testing her limits._

"Ziva, that's our job to find out. You just wait with Abby."

"_You know Abby hates company."_

"Today it might be different. You know, under the circumstances." The next thing McGee heard was the dial tone.

"You're doing a good job, Timothy," Ducky said, just as he had finished loading the body into the van.

"Job of what?" he replied glumly.

"Leading, my dear boy. Everyone is counting on you now. You're making the right decisions with ease. Gibbs has taught you well."

"Tony too," he admitted. "He may not have been very nice to me, but I really admired him."

"I know you did. And I'm sure he would be proud. He thought of you very much as the brother he had always wanted."

McGee smiled.

"Do stop worrying yourself."

"It's not me I'm worried about, Ducky. It's Ziva. She and Tony were in a bad place, and he died without them working things out. They were always such good friends until this all started."

"And Ziva regrets it very much too, but there is nothing that can be done. All we can do is remember the good times."

"Amen to that."

...

"Abby?" Ziva called to her friend. "Do you mind if I stay awhile?"

The Goth shook her head but kept her focus on the computer screen, resting her chin on her left hand and keeping Bert the Hippo tucked under her right. She patted the seat next to her.

A tiny sob escaped Ziva and it triggered tears, which she tried unsuccessfully to stop. That was enough to get Abby's attention. Ziva cried silently, trying to hide her face, shutting her eyes as tightly as she could to stop tears from escaping.

"Let it out, Ziva," Abby told her, embracing her gently. "You're not gonna do any good keeping it all bottled up."

She wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. "No, Abby, I can cry later. You have work to do. I just wish there was something I could distract myself with."

"Well, you could read this." Abby handed Ziva an envelope with her name written in Tony's handwriting.

"There was one for all of us," she explained. "He gave them to me about a month ago and told me that if anything happened to him, to make sure these were delivered."

Ziva went into the other room for a moment alone. She daren't cry as Abby could see her through the glass, but she did sit there for a long time before she opened the envelope, contemplating what it might say. When she couldn't wait any longer, she carefully opened it, not ripping it the slightest bit, as if the letter were Tony himself.

_Dear Ziva,_

_I want you to know that out of all the letters I wrote, I wrote this one last. I've been thinking this whole time about what I was going to write, and I'm still not quite sure, so here goes._

_I have always thought of NCIS as my foster family. My father and I were never that close, and I know it sounds stupid, but they're the family I have always wanted. I guess that's why I took you all for granted, and why I never had the guts to say what's in these letters to everyone's faces._

_Gibbs has always been like a father, he taught me a lot of what I know now, and I know he would classify our relationship the same way. McGee, Abby and even Kate I thought of as siblings. Jenny was the mother, the boss, always knew best. I guess Vance is the evil uncle. And then there's you. I've never quite been able to figure out how I really feel about you, Ziva. And in death (assuming Abby followed my instructions and I'm really dead), now I'm sure you're wondering that too. But I'll take a risk here since there can't be any worse consequences than there are now._

_I love you. I would do anything for you. I never meant to hurt you. You're smart, independent, beautiful, everything I ever wanted, and I let you get away. But now, with my last words to you, just know that even though I'm gone, that love will always be there. All you have to do is remember. _

_-Tony_

Ziva couldn't help but cry after that. It was so romantic, so poetic, so beautiful. As she read the words _I love you, _her hand had flown to her mouth and her eyes watered. The page was now stained with her tears, so she folded it carefully and put it back into the envelope, where it would be safe.

"I'm glad you read the letter," she heard Tony say. This time he was standing right in front of her, and he looked absolutely real. She wanted to reach out and touch him.

"Why didn't I listen to you?" she asked. "Why did I stay with Michael?"

"Because the heart wants what the heart wants, and that's what your heart wanted."

"Am I going crazy?"

"No. If you were crazy then I wouldn't be the only ghost standing here."

She smiled.

"That's my ninja." He touched her face, but she didn't feel anything. "I miss you, Ziva."

"I miss you too. More than you could know."

"Oh, I do know. I've been inside your mind, remember? I'm a figment."

She felt a pang of sadness when she remembered that.

"I hate seeing you like this Ziva."

"Believe me, I don't like _being _like this, but I can't help it."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Tell me that you love me."

"Ziva, I'm not real, the letter is. And by the way, you were the only one I wrote to. I told Abby to lie."

"Just do it. Please, Tony, for me."

"Alright: I love you."

She shut her eyes. "Thank you." She opened them again when he didn't respond.

"Tony? Tony? I love you too!" she cried desperately.

_I know you do. But I have to go. I'm so glad we talked one last time. _

"Why are you leaving me?"

_Because I'm dead now. I'm bending the rules as it is, staying here with you for this long. _

"But—"

_I know, Ziva, but I have to see the others before I go for good. This is the last time we'll ever be together, but that's OK, because we're finally at peace with our feelings. If I could kiss you, I would. I love you, Ziva David._

"Tony," she called feebly, sobbing. "You're really gone."

**A/N: So, the others are yet to have their last meetings with Tony, and Gibbs is still missing. The plot thickens. That was a pretty long chapter. Maybe a review for my hard work? Pwetty pweeease?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: thanks to anyone who has reviewed so far. I also just realised that my separation of paragraphs was a bit messed up so I will try to make it more clear from now on, although no one seemed to mind. Anyway, new chapter: Tony visits the rest of the team and stumbled across a loophole for those in the afterlife. It's getting a little Fantasy but that's OK.**

Timothy McGee was sitting at his desk. Considering the team's current situation, the statement itself was a lot less epic than he thought it should be, but it was the truth. As far as progress went, however, he was getting nowhere. He kept thinking about Tony. He didn't know if he was ready to lead a team yet. But he had no choice. Or did he? It was all so mind-blowing.

"Don't get yourself down, McGee."

Tim jumped at what sounded _exactly _like Tony's voice. Great, now he was hearing things.

"You're not hearing things."

This time, McGee spotted him, which only scared him all the more. He was sitting at his own desk just a few feet away, a task he had done many times before.

"I'm running behind schedule, McGee, so I gotta make this quick," he stated.

"OK, but before you do, I have two questions: one, you're dead; what kind of schedule do you have? And two, why are you behind on it?"

"When you're dead, McGee, you get a few days before you're completely gone from people's lives. It's something Death gives in return for one's life."

"What, like the Grim Reaper?"

"Yeah, he's a tall guy in a black cloak with one bone hand and a big stick with a spike on the end. What do you think?"

"It doesn't sound realistic."

"We're not supposed to talk about it."

"Do you get some kind of seminar on this stuff?"

"Look, McGee, you can find that out when you're dead. Let's just say there is such thing as the afterlife. I'm not actually visible, but I can control your brain so you can see and hear me the way you would think is a fantasy."

"That's amazing! I guess Abby's been right all these years, about it being possible to communicate with the dead."

"Yeah, but don't tell anyone." He tapped the side of his nose.

McGee took a breath. "Why are you here now, Tony?"

"I just wanted to get something off my chest. I'm proud of you, Tim. You've handled this all really well, and I know you're going to lead this team to great things."

"It's not really much of a team now, just me and Ziva."

"Look after her for me, will you?"

Tim nodded understandingly. "Sure."

"Thanks, man. Look, I gotta go, you'd think being dead would involve less of a hectic schedule, but no."

"Tony, just one more question: do you know where Gibbs is?"

"I was kinda saving him till last."

"Oh. No problems."

"Good luck, Tim."

Tim blinked and his friend was gone, as if he was never there. He went over to Tony's desk and touched its surface. He felt the chair and yanked his hand away when he felt it was warm.

...

Ducky held the scalpel for just that few seconds longer, not wanting to cut into his friend's chest. It was just as well he did, because Ziva entered at that very moment, her eyes red.

"Ziva, my dear, I wasn't expecting you," Ducky stated calmly.

"I am sorry for interrupting, Ducky, I just...wanted to see him one last time. Am I too late?"

"No, not at all. I had a feeling you might want to pay him a visit."

Ziva ran a hand over his cold flesh and blood-drained face. She squeezed his hand and shut her eyes tight, muttering words in Hebrew.

"Ani ohevet otcha, ani ohevet otcha..."

She felt a warm hand on her shoulder. "I know how much you cared for him, Ziva. I think it's safe to say he felt the same."

Ziva couldn't stand it anymore, and broke down into loud sobs. Ducky held her tightly. Ziva didn't want to cry, but Ducky was one of the few people she felt truly safe with, and she knew he could be trusted. As the tears poured down her cheeks, she came to realise how much she had wanted to cry, and after almost five minutes, she was able to bring herself to a stop.

"Thank you, Ducky."

"You're very welcome, my dear. Everything will be alright."

Those words. _Everything will be alright. _They made Ziva feel like a little child. "Promise?" she asked, feeling more small and hopeless by the second.

"You have my word."

...

Ziva had left the lab a while ago, and Abby was now alone, and once again was listening to a dirge, out of respect for her beloved Tony. Tony had been like a big brother to her, the best big brother in the world. He was sweet, funny, a great role model, and Abby had loved him like family.

"You were my little sister, Abs."

Abby wasn't shocked to hear Tony's voice. She was pleased.

"Finally. I thought you weren't gonna come."

"Very funny. You know I'll always come."

"Yeah, I do."

"Growing up, I always wanted a sister. Not a little brother who'd show me up, but a girl, who could teach me things and be my friend when all the other girls hated me."

"That's sweet, Tony."

Abby finally looked at him, and cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"How come you're not dressed up like a Goth like Kate?"

Tony looked at her, perplexed by what she meant.

"Kate wasn't a Goth."

"No, when I saw her, after she died, she was dressed up just like a Goth. How come I'm not seeing you that way?"

"It wasn't your choice how you saw her, it was Kate's. I guess she wanted to connect with you."

"How did she appear to you?"

Tony grinned as he remembered the fantasy.

"Schoolgirl," he said.

Abby rolled her eyes.

"Now that I think about it, maybe she did like me. After all, she chose to appear to me that way. It's supposed to seem like it's all the person's doing, the fantasy, but it isn't." Tony licked his lips.

"You're a pig," Abby said. She was joking, of course. "I am really gonna miss you, Tony."

"I know." He smiled proudly. "I'll miss you too, Abs. You know, one of your hugs might be enough to bring me back from the dead, if it were possible."

"I'm hugging you in my mind." Abby closed her eyes to picture it, and when she opened them, he was gone.

...

Tony's final stop took him to Stillwater, Pennsylvania, Gibbs' hometown. He probably should have seen that coming.

Leroy Jethro Gibbs was peacefully sweeping the floor of his father's store, and Tony sat there waiting for him to notice him.

"Gibbs," he finally called.

Gibbs' happy expression faded. "DiNozzo," he whispered.

"What? Aren't you happy to see me?"

"I'm not sure. What is it you want?"

"Leroy? Who're ya talkin' to?" Jackson called from another room.

"No one, Dad!" Gibbs replied, turning back to Tony.

"Gibbs, here's all I wanted to say: you are and always have been the father I never had. I look up to you, learn from you, and I only ever wanted your approval. Whatever anyone else thought didn't matter, as long as you thought I was making the right call."

Gibbs just nodded.

"Well, that's all I wanted to say. Get back to your sweeping."

"I'm proud of you Tony. I've always thought of you as a son, and you truly are the best young agent I have ever worked with in my almost twenty years at NCIS. You didn't deserve to die, especially not the way you did."

"I'm happy as long as the team knows how I felt. Rivkin being dead is just icing on the cake." He hesitated. "Did you do it?"

Gibbs was silent.

_Back at NCIS Headquarters..._

"Timothy!" Ducky called as he stepped out of the elevator and into the bullpen. "I have news regarding Michael Rivkin's death!"

"The bullet shots? Were they post mortem?" Tim asked frantically.

"I'm afraid not, my dear boy."

_Stillwater, Pennsylvania..._

"Yeah, I did it, and I'll admit it! I'm not going anywhere until those bastards from the FBI figure out that I'm not gonna let anyone go who hurts my agents!"

"Gibbs..." Tony was not sure what to say. "Thank you."

**A/N: How was it? I'm kinda tired but I wanted to get this finished before I went to sleep so it was a bit rushed. I have ideas for the next chapter but I have to update a few other stories first so not for a few days minimum. Reviews would be nice!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hello, my people! So thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favourite or alerted this story! The response hasn't been massive but I am having fun writing it so I don't mind so much. But lots of reviews would guarantee a new chapter very soon so...10 reviews? That's all I ask (but if you're feeling generous...) Enjoy!**

The sun set peacefully over DC. His time was up, and now, Tony DiNozzo was nothing more than a ghost.

After all the movies he had seen in his life, it almost disappointed him how un-ghost-like he was. He couldn't fly, and rather than being pale and transparent, he was just himself, the day he died, and would stay that way forever. And it was now his job to watch over the people he cared about. He knew where he belonged. He had never really left.

...

After Tony's funeral, things weren't any better. McGee made numerous mistakes, both in the field and the office. Abby tried to reassure him, but it never really worked. This team was coming apart at the seams.

Finding Gibbs hadn't helped either. Once McGee figured out where he had been hiding and drove out to Stillwater, they discovered the FBI had beaten them to it.

The team watched in shock as they saw their boss, their hero, being pulled away in cuffs. McGee was so glad it had only been him and Ziva. He wouldn't have wanted Abby to see it.

The drive home was no better. After an hour of complete silence, Ziva suddenly broke down. Her sobs were loud and tearstains were falling on her jeans as she howled. McGee pulled the truck over and hugged her in a brotherly way.

"This is my fault," she whimpered.

He took a deep breath, considering what he was going to say. Ziva was too important to him for him to lie to her through his teeth. "No, it was Gibbs' choice to do what he did and it was Tony's choice to do what he did."

"But Tony was looking out for me, and Gibbs was avenging Tony. Now he has been arrested and I am sure they will find substantial amounts of evidence against him, enough to hold up in court. He will most likely be sent to prison, McGee."

Ziva wiped her tears and put on a brave face, but she looked like a wreck. Her eyes and nose were red and there were dark purple rings under her eyes.

"Have you been sleeping OK?" he asked her gently.

She shook her head. "Nightmares."

His worry grew.

As for Jackson, he was taken into custody, and interrogated (by another agent since no member of the team could bring themselves to do it). Eventually he was released, but the same could not be said for Gibbs. The bullets in Michael Rivkin matched his gun, and his hair and fibres from his NCIS jacket were found at the scene. But as it turned out, that wasn't needed, because Gibbs confessed.

It took a lot for the girls not to break down in court that day, especially since it had been up to Abby to present her forensic findings to the jury. She kept catching Gibbs' eye and losing her place. The judge's deep voice rang through the room as he boomed one word: "Guilty".

He shot his 'daughters' a look as he was taken away, and Abby could have sworn he had mouthed 'I'm sorry'. But she couldn't be sure.

Ziva shut her eyes. _Is this really happening?_

Tony was watching over them. He wanted to stop the whole thing. But he knew he could do nothing. He had not been back to NCIS since he had appeared to McGee. He had been at Ziva's apartment. But he had a feeling it was time to go back there. Monday, he decided.

...

Ziva didn't sleep well that night. Her nightmares were getting worse each night. She would cry, drift off to sleep, then wake up five minutes later screaming. The nights were endless; painful. She preferred the days. They were much less lonely.

Ziva knew there was nothing she could do to get back to sleep, so she went into the living room with a mug of warm milk and tried to calm her nerves. She wanted to read something, and her eyes came across a dust-covered copy of Deep Six.

She picked it up and began to read, right from the beginning. After eight chapters, she finally fell into a deep slumber, and stayed that way until five the next morning, awoken by the ring of her phone.

"Hello?" she answered groggily.

"_Ziva, it's McGee, we have a case in Maryland. I'll send you the coordinates."_

"OK," she replied, yawning.

"_Did you get any sleep last night?"_

"Yes, a little."

"_That's good. See you soon."_

McGee hung up.

...

_Later that day, around noon..._

Tony waltzed into the bullpen, frustrated at the fact that he still had to take the elevator to get there. But it was _so _worth it when he did.

There was a small group of people waiting for him. He knew they were waiting for him because they all smiled really big when he entered.

There were three of them in total, only one of whom he didn't recognise. At first, he couldn't decide who to go to first. Luckily, he didn't have to.

He felt arms around him, which shocked him as he didn't think he could feel anything anymore. Standing there, smiling up at him was his former partner, Caitlin Todd.

He didn't say anything, he just hugged her back, and spotted Jenny Shepard smiling at them over her shoulder. She too received a hug from Tony.

"I can't believe I'm talking to you again," Jenny said.

"Me neither," Kate said.

"It's like we've been watching an endless soap opera for the past few months, Tony." Jenny chuckled, and then her happy look faded. "I can't believe what Gibbs did. It was stupid of him."

"I know you cared about him, Jenny," he said, not hesitating at all to call her by her first name. "I have a feeling he'll get out of this...somehow."

He turned to the third person: a young girl, probably about sixteen, dark hair, brown eyes, tan skin. How a dead person could possibly have a tan, Tony didn't know. She looked at Jenny, who gave her a little nod.

"And who might you be?" Tony asked politely.

"My name is Tali David," the girl replied.

"Ziva's sister," he muttered.

The girl smiled. "Very good. I have been watching over my little sister since I died. You were very good to her..._most _of the time."

The two shook hands.

"Tali, I loved your sister, very much."

"I know," she said.

"We all know," Kate informed him.

"Great. I'm so glad my life was so entertaining for you."

"Oh, we've known since you two went undercover together," Tali laughed.

Tony hesitated and looked at Kate. "You were...in the room."

"Oh, we both were," Kate said, grinning at Tony's shocked expression. "I'm kidding! I wouldn't watch you have sex with someone, that's just not right."

Tony lifted an eyebrow.

"OK, we stayed for, like, five minutes, but then we left, I promise."

"You're really not as puritanical as I thought you were."

Kate opened her mouth to respond, but the elevator doors opened to let in McGee and Ziva, and Tali and Jenny both shushed her.

Much to the ghosts' disappointment, both agents were silent.

"So, how does this 'afterlife' thing work?" Tony asked the three women.

"Well, you stay watching over the people you care about for as long as you want," Tali informed him. "And when you want to stop, there's a way."

"But we can never talk to them? Never touch them?"

"It doesn't make a lot of sense, and it takes death to realise how wrong science is, but there is a way.

"What is it? Tell me!"

"You get given four hours which you can spend time on Earth as a human, doing anything."

"How do you use it?"

"There's a...a spell kinda thing. I know, it sounds so incredibly _lame._"

"How do you know this stuff, Tali?"

"Someone dead teaches you. That's pretty much how it works. I guess it just gets passed down. You don't have to use them all at once, either. But be careful with your four hours. It's been almost fifteen years since I died and I've never used mine."

"Neither have we," Kate said, pointing to herself and Jenny.

Tony nodded.

"But we're planning to," Jenny said. "Or at least we were, until Jethro got himself arrested."

"We can still do it," Kate said. "We'll go see him."

"When?"

"Not just yet. We should wait until everything settles down just a little."

"Good idea," Tony agreed.

At that moment, two more ghosts entered the bullpen; a woman and a little girl.

"Hi, Tony," said the woman. "I'm Shannon and this is my daughter Kelly."

**A/N: How will the ghost gang spend their four hours on Earth? I think I'll change this to supernatural, because it's most certainly gone down that road. But it's nice to be doing something different for once. Anyway, that was pretty long. Maybe I deserve some reviews?**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: New chapter! Enjoy! Sorry it's been so long. This is the second-last chapter.**

_Last time…_

_At that moment, two more ghosts entered the bullpen; a woman and a little girl._

"_Hi, Tony," said the woman. "I'm Shannon and this is my daughter Kelly."_

…

Tony was still. "_The _Shannon and Kelly?" he asked. "As in..."

"Yes, Jethro's first wife and daughter," Shannon finished for him. Kelly smiled a toothy smile.

Tony shook the woman's hand. She had beautiful auburn hair and rosy cheeks, and hazel eyes surrounded by thick black lashes.

"You're Tony!" Kelly said. "My Daddy liked you."

Tony smiled, not being able to deny how cute the little girl was. "I know. I liked him too."

"Kelly can read people's thoughts," Shannon stated, as if it were completely normal.

"Excuse me?" Tony asked in reply, bewildered.

"She can tell what people are thinking. I can't say I like it, considering everything that goes on around here, but if she's gifted there's nothing I can do about it."

"Is that normal?" he asked Kate.

"It's...uncommon, but not unheard of," she replied knowingly.

"Anything else I should know about being dead?"

"Just forget everything you've seen in movies and on TV and you should be fine," Jenny assured him with a smile that lit up her eyes, like the ones she used to give Gibbs.

"That's gonna be hard for Tony," Kate said, laughing. The others laughed too, except the man in question.

"What's wrong?" Jenny asked him.

"I'm just...worried about the team," he replied. He looked at Shannon. "Would you mind if I, uh..."

"Borrowed my daughter? Go ahead, Tony," Shannon said.

Tony grabbed Kelly's little hand and crouched beside her. "Kelly, can you tell me what Tim's thinkin'?"

Kelly looked hard at McGee, who was filling out paperwork. She frowned a little and scrunched up her nose.

"He's stressed, and scared. He wants you and Daddy to come back," Kelly said, her blue eyes a mirror of Gibbs'.

"And Ziva?" Tony asked, trying not to sound too worried for the woman, whom he knew was independent.

"She's trying not to think about you but she can't. She just wants a hug from you."

It hurt Tony's heart to think that the one thing Ziva wanted she could never have. He hugged the little girl.

"Your daddy is an amazing person, Kelly," he told her.

"But Daddy's in jail. He killed a man," Kelly replied, tears in her little eyes.

"Because of me, you know that? He was angry because the man he killed, that man killed me."

"Michael," Kelly confirmed.

Tony was suitably impressed at how much Kelly knew and how well she was dealing with it.

"But your father taught me so many things. He made me a good cop. He taught Ziva how to be an investigator, and McGee how to do field work. He taught Kate to be a cop when she came from the Secret Service and Jenny when she first started. He doesn't show it, but he cares very much about our team."

"He used to show it," Shannon said, a tear running down her cheek. "But then we were killed and...he just stopped. He gave himself a hard shell. Nothing could get in, nothing could escape. Then he met Jenny, and you, and Kate, Tim, Ziva, and he started to feel again. And I thank you for that, Tony."

In the corner, a previously silent Tali decided to speak up.

"You know, this has got me thinking. This is all part of one big chain of events. Ari shot Gerald all those years back, and Gibbs wanted nothing but revenge. He had planned to kill Gibbs, but,"—she shot Kate a loving look—"Kate paid the price. Then Ari was going to kill Gibbs but..." Tali sniffed.

"Gibbs killed him first. I know, it must be so hard for you." Tony placed a hand on her shoulder.

"What?" Tali asked. "She didn't tell you?"

"Who didn't tell me what?"

"Tony, Ziva pulled that trigger. She saved Gibbs' life and earned his trust by doing it but she…she killed Ari."

Tony's eyes shot to Ziva, at her desk. "You mean," he said, not taking his eyes off her, as if something would devour her if he looked away. "She's lived all these years with that secret eating at her skin?"

"It all worked out for the better, in a way," Kate said, placing a hand on Tony's shoulder. "If she hadn't done it, she might have never stayed at NCIS, and you never might have…" she choked on the words a little. "Fallen in love with her," she finished in a teary whisper.

Truth be told, as much as they joked around, Kate had loved Tony very much. It was a different kind of love that he had with Ziva; this was more like a best-friend kind of love. Almost losing him twice had been heartbreaking, and seeing his car getting blown up two years later was no help either.

At first, Kate had resented Ziva, like Abby had, but after what she did, and soldiering on so bravely, the Israeli gained her respect. And now all Caitlin could feel for the woman was empathy.

Tony hesitated to ask his next question, but did anyway. "Where is Ari?"

"He didn't want to stay here," Tali explained. "He left us after Ziva shot him. He felt betrayed and when I tried to comfort him he said he wanted nothing to do with me." Tali slowly broke down in sobs, and Jenny took her into her motherly arms. Kate continued what she assumed Tali was going to say.

"After Ziva killed Ari," she said gently. "She was assigned to your team. Then she met Michael, he killed you and Gibbs killed him."

"So much death," Tali sobbed. The way she spoke, it was hard to remember she was only sixteen. Sort of.

Shannon held her daughter closely. "Tony, I assume you're going to spend your four hours with..."

"Well, some of them, at least," Tony finished, knowing that she was going to say 'Ziva'.

"You know it just occurred to me," Kate said, butting in. "If Ari was angry, why didn't he use his four hours to get revenge?"

"Because he gave them to me," Tali said, her eyes red.

All heads turned to the "teen".

"I thought you said that he felt betrayed?" Jenny asked.

"He did, but he could never stop being my big brother."

"So you have _eight _hours?" Tony questioned.

"Yes, but I do not need long to tell Ziva my feelings. Or anyone, for that matter. I have nothing to say to my father, and my mother stopped watching years ago, so she's out. You, on the other hand," she turned to Tony. "Well, you have a lot you need to say, and to do. I want you to take some of my time."

"Tali, I couldn't do that to you, after you waited this long," Tony objected.

"No, really, I have thought about this a lot. I have eight hours. I only need one, as far as I am concerned."

"Aren't there things you wanted to do in life?" Kate asked. "Ride a scary rollercoaster, eat a really big ice cream, that kinda thing?"

"Caitlin, I believe that you find who you are through your defeats, not your victories. The things I really wanted to do in life; have children and a husband and to stop fighting...they are not things I can accomplish in eight hours. And besides, I have a family." She put her arms around the three women and small child.

"Tony," she continued. "I want you to take four of my hours. Spend time getting to know my sister a little."

"Tali, I've known her five years," Tony needlessly informed her.

"And after five years, what do you know _about _her? Tony, Ziva has always been the mysterious and beautiful Israeli ex-assassin to you. But she is a person, with a heart that has taken far too much damage in her short life. Not quite as short as mine, of course, but I digress. Get to know her _imperfections. _She gets gunk in her eyes when she wakes up in the morning. She shops for groceries; she shaves her legs, she gets PMS, and she can almost never brush her teeth without getting some toothpaste on her shirt. She loves carrots, sometimes drools on her pillow when she sleeps and she's a sucker for a good romance novel."

Tali smiled at her crazy sister, and Tony realised she was right. He really didn't know Ziva as a human being. She was always this more-than-perfect woman in an imperfect world. Tony had never thought about the daily stuff, or stuff she might be embarrassed about. She was always the one that got away.

Tali held Tony's hand and closed her eyes. Soon a dim white glow surrounded their hands briefly, and then faded.

Then she turned to the others.

"I want to give Kelly and Shannon an hour each with Gibbs, and Jenny and Kate, a half hour."

The women joined hands and the same glow formed around each pair, and then disappeared.

"I just have a question," Tony said. "If people can spend time with their loved ones, why hasn't anyone discovered it?"

"Well, some psychologists say it's just the brain's reaction to death, and a lot of dead people don't know about their four hours," Kate explained. "Besides, there's no way to prove it without killing someone."

Tony shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Alright, gang," Tali said. "We hit Earth _tonight._"

...

Abby awoke with a start at the beeping of her mass spectrometer, the sweat on her face making her pigtails stick. She groaned and sat up, heading to her little bathroom. The countertop was cluttered with her makeup things as she often did it when she got to work. Now she was just staring at her reflection.

She had the clothes. She had the makeup. She had the jewellery. She had everything she needed to embrace her perky Goth personality.

Except the heart.

Without taking her eyes off the imaginary Abby in the mirror, she slowly pulled the elastic off one pigtail, then the other. She pulled out a hairbrush she had left in there and brushed her hair until it was straight. She grabbed a cotton pad and ran it under the tap, running it across her face in long strokes. She soon had to grab another, and another, until finally all the makeup was gone.

Abby then went to her desk and pulled out the spare clothes she used when she went for a jog before work (because she always got in early, it wasn't light when she ran so she didn't need her parasol). A pair of black track pants, an army green t-shirt and a pair of sneakers. She put them on, discarding her schoolgirl skirt, skull-covered sweater and platforms on her lab floor.

Last but not least, she pulled off all her jewellery. The choker was first to go, then the necklaces, bracelets, rings, and even her earrings.

Finally, all the fake was gone. This was Abby; raw, pure and simple.

She was tired of pretending.

…

**A/N: Writing the last chapter as we speak! Might do an epilogue afterwards. Anyways…reviews? Favourite lines? Tell you what, if I wake up in the morning with ten reviews, I'll update tomorrow. Deal?**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: here is the last chapter (apart from the epilogue)! Thanks so much for the support and reviews and alerts and all that jazz! PS I know I said earlier that Tali was Ziva's older sister but I checked and she isn't so hopefully I will get around to editing that. I have said the correct thing in this chapter.**

Jenny was first to visit Earth, they decided.

Tali, who seemed to know everything about being dead, whispered what she must say in her ear and Jen repeated it obediently. Not only would she be travelling back to life from the grave, but she would be going straight to Gibbs' prison and leaving the others behind.

After a flash of light, the red head was gone.

…

Jenny appeared in Gibbs' cell, and he was asleep. The Death Team, as Tony liked to call them, had made sure it was during visiting hours.

The ex-Director watched him for a moment, sleeping. He was right there, so close to her touch, and yet, she couldn't bring herself to just kiss him. What did she have to lose? He would probably think it was all a dream, but what about Shannon? She was up there, waiting for him. Shannon knew all too well how Jenny felt about him, and had said it was alright for Jenny to be with him one more time. After all, Gibbs had moved on.

She squeezed his hand and tears welled in her eyes. "Jethro," she whispered.

He stirred, and opened his big blue eyes, nearly falling off his bed when he saw her.

"Shh," she said, trying to calm him.

"Jen?" he brought himself to say.

"Glad to see you remember me," she said, a grin breaking out onto her face as Jethro took her into his arms.

Jen's four hours were spent feeling Gibbs touch her like he had not touched her in so long: with meaning and love, and it felt even better than it had in Paris.

Tears poured down her cheek when her time finally came to an end and she simply dissolved, joining the others back at NCIS.

Gibbs didn't understand. Jenny had felt so _real. _Her hair, her skin, God, she even _smelled _like she had when she was alive. How could a dream that was so good, be so cruel?

But one thought stood alone in his crowded mind: _was it really a dream?_

…

Kelly and Shannon were next to go, and they decided they should go together, be as a family one last time. More tears were shed than ever before, as Shannon watched Gibbs sob into little Kelly's shoulder as he hugged her and told her how much he thought of her and loved her, always.

But hours disappeared and soon, they dissolved too. Gibbs' heart was overflowing with love he had buried long ago and was now letting out.

…

Tali did not visit her sister until she had tried to fall asleep. That way she would not scare Ziva as much.

Tali tried her best to tiptoe as she approached her sister but failed and Ziva awoke.

And what she saw made her scream. Ziva never screamed.

"Zi-zi, please, it's me, Tali," the younger Israeli said softly.

Ziva still said nothing and did not move.

"Your little sister."

Without further hesitation Ziva raced to her sister and pulled her into a tight embrace.

"You are alive? Why did you not find me until now?" Ziva asked eagerly.

Immediately Tali felt bad for having to let her sister down. She just didn't know how to say the words.

"I…I am not alive, Ziva. I am just a visitor."

The older woman stepped away in fear, although she had never really been afraid of things supernatural. "What do you mean you're not alive?"

"Ziva, I—" Tali tried to apologise, but she was cut off.

"I have to say goodbye to you again? I cannot do it, Talia."

Tali knew she was serious at the use of her full name. "You can, Ziva. You're strong."

"Not as strong as you are…were," she replied.

"Everybody said I was the strong one," Tali said. "But I always looked up to you. You are my big sister, Ziva. You are so brave and I love you for that."

Ziva held back tears and took her sister into her arms. They cried for a long time. Neither knew how long.

"Tell me about Tony," Tali asked, wondering if she could get some truth out of her sister.

"How could you know about Tony?"

"I've been watching over you ever since the day I left this planet, and will every day until you join me in watching." The young girl smiled, knowing she was probably saying too much but it couldn't really do any harm. "He watches you too."

"Tell him I am sorry," Ziva pleaded.

"You have nothing to be sorry for."

"For only making myself available after he needed my help, for never seeing what he was obviously trying to convey to me, for getting so upset about the way he acted over Michael…" she stopped when a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Tell him I miss him."

"He knows. And he hates seeing you like this."

"Tell him…" she hesitated, but there was no denying what was in her heart. "Tell him I love him."

"He knows that too. And he loves you so much, Zi-Zi."

Ziva squeezed her eyes shut to stop more tears from escaping. Tali stared at her hand. Colours were swirling around it, showing that her time to leave was due. Carefully, she leaned up to her sister's ear and whispered, "But don't just take my word for it."

And then Talia was gone. Ziva was alone and more than confused.

She rested her head on her pillow and thought about what just happened. The tears on her face, they were real, but it couldn't have actually happened. It broke her heart to say it, but Tali was gone and she was never, ever coming back.

"I gotta go _now_," Tony said, when Tali returned. "I can't stay away any longer."

"You better go," Tali replied. "She misses you. Go."

And once again, a flash of colours passed before Tony disappeared.

Ziva was laying on top of her sheets when he arrived, and he thought she was asleep, so he simply sat next to her and kissed her cheek.

She immediately jumped at whoever could be in her bedroom.

Tony.

Now that she had been visited by Tali, she knew this was another dream. Without hesitation, she threw herself at Tony, kissing all over his face. And when their lips met, it was like fireworks.

…

Ziva had the most wonderful dream that night.

She and Tony made love.

It was all she could have dreamed and more.

And they talked, they shared. They cried. Both of them. And just like the time before, the tears felt completely real

And before sleep greeted them both, he turned to her and placed a ring on her finger.

"It's a promise ring," he explained gently. "I promise to always love you, and you will never leave my heart, Ziva David. Don't feel it obligates you to—"

She placed a hand on his cheek. "You better not leave my side either."

Tony sighed and looked at Ziva's alarm clock.

Three minutes left.

Three minutes left on Earth, with Ziva, the woman he loved.

As much as that saddened him, he knew it had been well spent. After the inevitable had happened, she lay in his arms for hours and he felt her pulse and her breathing as she slept.

And now the sun was coming up on a new day, and Ziva had to say goodbye to Tony again.

"Ziva…" he whispered. "Ziva I need to tell you something."

She rolled over. "What is it?"

"I gotta go." He couldn't meet her eyes. He couldn't face the sadness and the disappointment that clouded them.

"Go where?"

"Just…go. Forever."

Ziva shook her head. "No, no, no, I can't say goodbye again. Not after last night."

"You'll always have last night to remember."

The Israeli, in simple, pure sadness, wrapped her arms around the man she loved.

"You are amazing, Ziva. You are the only one I will love ever again," Tony whispered into her hair.

"Me neither."

"No," he objected. "You'll find someone, you'll be happy."

"I don't think I can," she said.

She closed her eyes to hide the ever-forming tears. The last thing she heard was like the wind:

"_I will never stop loving you."_

The rest was just a blur. Next thing she knew she was just waking up in her bed.

_What a dream. _The best and worst she'd ever had.

She sat up and ran her fingers through her messy hair, and was startled when she felt something that was not flesh brush against her scalp.

The promise ring.

Complete with the engraving: _I love you Ziva._

…

There was no question that Abby was the one to go to for all things supernatural. But Ziva wasn't sure she was right this time.

This was not the Abby she knew. This Abby wore her signature black her straight and wore business clothes, even high heels.

"Abby?" Ziva called. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing," Abby replied in a monotone voice. "Just working on a DNA search."

Ziva shook her head. "What happened to the Abby I know? Wouldn't be caught dead in high heels unless absolutely necessary. Wore pigtails every day. She—"

"She grew up, Ziva. I grew up," Abby said firmly.

"That's a shame; I was in need of your expertise on death."

Abby spun around in her chair and her eyes lit up. "Let's get to it! The federal crime can wait."

Ziva explained everything: her dream, her visions of Tony before his funeral, and finally, the ring.

"I remember, in my dream, he gave it to me. I did not have it on when I went to sleep."

That was possibly the fastest dusting-for-prints Abby had ever done. And sure enough, Tony's fingerprints were on the ring.

As much as it scared the two, it scared them even more that they could not think of one theory to explain this.

Eventually they just decided to try to accept it. It was like when Jenny's father's prints showed up on a glass of alcohol years ago. Maybe someone was messing with Ziva, but in the weeks and months to come, there were no signs of Tony.

And slowly, things began to get better. McGee's leadership instincts began to kick in, and a new, young male agent was assigned to their team. Abby's Goth style eventually returned, just to a slightly lesser degree. Ziva dated casually for a little while, then decided simply to stop looking for someone—if they were truly right for her then they would not need to look for each other.

She never did find out if Tony had really been with her or not, but deep inside, she held onto the belief—like the way a child holds on to their beliefs of fairies or magic—that he had been there. He had always had her back.

A little thing like death wasn't going to stop that.

**a/n: END. Epilogue will be up shortly. LOVE YOU to anyone who has supported this story in any way!**

**And since I always forget the disclaimer: I do not own NCIS but DPB totally lets me borrow it. :D BYE! ^_^**


	7. Epilogue

**A/N: hey, here's the epilogue, it's short! Thanks again for the support, you guys are amazing!**

As nature probably would have intended, death took Ducky next.

That was almost seven years after Tony's death.

In meeting Tali David and Shannon and Kelly Gibbs, and being reunited with Tony, Kate and Jenny, the long-time scientist was fascinated by this process one goes through at death.

Of course, now that there were no cases for the deceased to solve and the dead had no need for sleep, Ducky's stories made the nights more interesting. At least for Kelly and Tali. Sometimes Jenny would listen in but Kate and Tony usually kept to themselves.

Kate watched Tony watching Ziva, and knew he would never, ever love anyone else. It hurt him to see her with others, but he knew that those relationships weren't too serious, and even though they had loved each other, what's done is done and he couldn't expect her to never move on.

And the one thing that kept his heart strong: she never once removed her ring. Not in her thirty years of life after Tony died.

Death took Ziva at the age of fifty-nine, by cancer.

It had been excruciating for everyone around her, especially those who couldn't be with her; a group that was growing steadily. In three decades they had been joined by Jackson Gibbs, who could do no other than to watch over his only son, whose death came three years after Ducky's. Abby and McGee eventually decided to give things another try, especially with Gibbs no longer with them to enforce his rules. They were lucky they did not have to grieve for the other; death took them both in a car accident twenty-five years after Tony's death.

When Ziva finally joined the group, which everyone loved being part of so much that no one had ever left, she was returned to a younger, more healthy age. It was said that they were taken to the time they had been most happy. McGee and Abby had never been happier than when they were together, so they were taken back about twenty-two years. Gibbs was the age he was the day Kelly was born, so it was a little odd seeing him so young-looking, but they adjusted. Jenny had been taken back to the day she and Gibbs were reunited. Tony had been taken back a few years, no one was sure of the date exactly, and Ziva had been changed to who she was that one night she spent with Tony.

Although it was something Gibbs and some of the others probably didn't want to see, Tony and Ziva's lips met in a passionate kiss the second they were reunited.

They let go for air and let their foreheads rest together. Her hands were around his neck and his on her waist.

Feeling his breath on her cheeks only made her want to kiss him again. They had been apart for so long, and Ziva hadn't stopped loving him for a second. All those years of frustration and loneliness couldn't possibly be poured out in one kiss. But she settled for a simple 'I love you'. A kiss could wait.

After all, they had forever.

**A/N: well, that's another story over! Hoped you liked this one, guys! It was pretty weird. Reviews would be greatly appreciated. In the future (and no promises), I may do a sequel but that won't be for a long time, probably. It seems good left as it is, but we'll have to see. Bye!**


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